Location  Corner of Gran Vía with calle Tudescos, Madrid.

Site  700 square metres

Brief  To design the company headquarters for  CEMEX, a multinational spanish company specializing in high quality building materials, on one of the most emblematic streets of the city.

Program

• Three levels of underground parking
• General public spaces: an auditorium, vestibules, reception spaces and exhibition rooms
• Offices: administration offices, management offices (including a specifically designed office for the CEO) and research + development laboratories
• Installations and services
• General residential area: a series of small apartments to be rented or used by company guests.
• A duplex penthouse apartment for the company’s CEO.

Background  On the 100 year anniversary of the construction of Gran Vía, its urban significance is thrown into greater relief. The Gran Vía was built at the beginning of the 20th century in an attempt to modernise and organise the centre of Madrid. It was felt that Madrid needed a new structure to be able to enter into the world of the new century and to be able to compete with newer modern cities such as New York.

Personal Intention  The Cemex building would be the first building of the 21st century on Gran Vía. I considered that the design had to be treated with sensitivity and approached with a sense of the history of the environment. I wanted to create a building that referenced its urban history whilst introducing a note of innovation and renewal.